Her Favorite Outlaw
by LauraRoslinForever
Summary: During the missing year, Regina attends Roland's birthday party. Pure Outlaw Queen fluff written for OutlawQueenLuvr who wanted more Dimples Queen. Will be a two-shot fic.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: A small little request from OutlawQueenluvr, who asked for some Dimples Queen. I can never resist writing such a tale. This will be a two-shot fic.**

**Here you are, m'dear, I hope it fits well.**

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Her Favorite Outlaw

A lone figure walked through familiar castle, a package in one hand; she nervously flattened the creases in her dress with the other. Regina walked the great distance from her chambers to the other side of the castle, and had nearly arrived at her destination, and when she reached the final corridor, she could just begin to see the small arrangement of tables and people milling about. It was a small intimate party, but big enough to excite a five year old boy. The tables were laid out neatly, an array of food, and she could just make out where Robin stood beside John, and Charming. Just the sight of him raised her spirits.

"Regina!" Five-year old Roland shrieked happily and threw himself into the legs of the approaching Queen. "You're here in time for my birthday!"

"Am I?" Regina leaned down and swung the giggling boy up on her hip. "That's lucky for both of us because I brought you a gift."

"Something for me?" He looked up at her with his big brown eyes full of curiosity.

Robin appeared in front of them and smirked at the sight before him. "You'll never be rid of him now, you know, Your Majesty. He has not stopped talking about you all day."

Regina chuckled. She didn't mind in the slightest because truly she was fond of Roland.

Roland tugged at the wrapped gift in her hand, excited for whatever it is that she brought. He didn't get presents often before today, and never from anyone but his Papa or the Merry Men. "What did you bring me?"

"Well, it's special," she laughed and handed over the blue box. "And you'll just have to wait till after your cake to find out."

"It's special?" Roland asked and turned the package this way and that studying it. Never before had he been given a gift wrapped like this!

Regina nodded, tapping his little nose with the tip of her finger. "Mhm, a special present for my bravest of knights."

A closer inspection compelled the boy to shake the box, which rattled, causing his eyes to widen excitedly. "I can hear it! Papa, Regina brought me my own present!"

Robin laughed. "I see that, my boy. Why don't you take it to the table and put it beside the others."

Regina placed the boy back down, and Roland rushed off to the table, just in line of sight from Regina and Robin.

Robin smiled at Regina. "Thank you for coming. It means a great deal to him."

"I couldn't miss his birthday." Regina said licking her lips and glancing around the room. The atmosphere becoming thick around them.

Robin cleared his throat. "Can I offer you something to drink, Majesty?"

"Why don't you call me, Regina." Robin's eyebrows shot up and she held up a finger to hold his forth coming comment. "Just for today."

He smiled that infuriating smile that made the flutter in her stomach increase ten-fold. She hated those amazing dimples. He held out a chair for her near his vacant one at the table. She sat down, her gaze leaving Robin's only briefly, a smile pulled at the corners of her mouth.

Roland ran back to them and threw himself across Regina's lap. "Can I sit with you? Are you staying with us for a while? Papa, can the Queen stay all night?"

"Breathe little one, you're talking too fast to understand." Robin tickled him and Roland stood on Regina's lap, wrapping his little hands around her in a hug to escape his father's hands.

The tiny body on her lap giggled and squirmed from the tickling. "Are you staying with us?"

"Roland, Regina lives in the castle already." Robin told him with light exasperation, as if he's had this conversation with his son before.

Roland placed his hand on Regina's chin pulling her gaze from his father to him. "But I want you to stay with me, Regina."

"I'll be around until you go to bed, my little Roe," She used his special nickname for him and laughed when he hugged her even tighter.

"Roland," his father warned him with a frown.

"He's fine, Robin," the Queen assured him.

Robin looked back at her and silently studied the pair. Roland was the most precious thing in his life, the only good fortune he'd been blessed with, and he usually kept him as far from passing visitors as he could. There was always something about Regina he and Roland trusted, however, a level of confidence he never allowed for anyone else. They were truly a striking pair together. "Well, let me know if he becomes bothersome," Robin told her.

Regina barely heard Robin's words over Roland's excitement, "Where do you stay in the Castle? Can you tell me stories tonight? "

She laughed at his exuberance and truly enjoyed her visit to see him. Though she would never tell Robin that. Just being near someone as innocent as the little boy in her lap allowed her to hope that maybe she wasn't completely ruined by her former past and maybe she'd have that second chance Robin spoke of someday. She had been evil, pure and simple, and she had more than one blood on her hands than she'd ever want to acknowledge. The blood and guilt could never be completely washed away, but her son Henry and this one little boy helped more than anything else in her life could. And, even perhaps the outlaw with those insufferable dimples and understanding eyes. She smiled down at Roland. "Which question do you want me to answer first?"

The Queen may be a woman of few words as of late, but for Roland she will talk as long as he wants her too. It's his birthday, after all.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks again to OutlawQueenLuvr for the adorable prompt, and Pastor Dan for the bedtime story. I hope this give you all tons of OQ and Dimples Queen feels. Also, thanks for all the faves, follows, and reviews. I love love love reviews! So, thank you so much.

Enjoy

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Part II

Roland let out a long wide yawn, he'd been fighting sleep for a while now. But there was just so much to do. So many people who came to see him and give him presents for his birthday. He'd had two big pieces of cake and played all sorts of games with his father and Regina. From his spot on the rug beside Regina, he now played with his new favorite toys. It was a set of toy horses, knights, and dragons. He felt Regina's hand on his back rubbing soothing circles much like his papa did when he took him to bed. His eyes started to droop, but he sat up and crawled into Regina's lap.

Leaning up a bit, Roland asked, "Can you tell me a story, Regina?"

Regina looked up into Robin's eyes and he gave her a knowing smile. The majority of the guests having already said their goodnight only left a few Merry Men in lingering conversation, and Robin and Regina. Robin got up from the table beside them and kneeling down in front of Regina and his son said, "Hey, little man, how about we get you ready for bed and then Regina can tell you story before you go to sleep?"

Seeming satisfied with this, Roland mumbled a sleepy okay, and put his small hand on Regina's cheek before cuddling back into her shoulder and warmth of her embrace without a second thought.

Regina rubbed his back, placing a kiss on his head. He shifted restlessly in his arms. "I think someone had too much birthday cake." She pat his back in knowing sympathy.

Robin shook his head smiling at Regina.

Holding out his hand for her, Robin helped her and placing his hand at the small of her back lead her to Roland's room. Walking over to a dresser he took out a night shirt for the boy and he gave Regina a small smile. "Would you like me to…"

"No, I can manage," Regina said, holding her hand out for the shirt.

Roland's face lit up sleepily when Regina sat down with him helping him into his pajamas.

Roland yawned once again as he was lifted up in Regina's arms so his head was resting on her shoulder and started rocking gently, and softly patting the his back. He sighed and he snuggled into her warmth.

Robin pulled back the covers on the bed and Regina laid the little boy down.

"What kind of story would you like?" She asked, sitting down beside him.

The little boy rolled over towards her. His mess of dark hair all around his face, he rubbed his eyes. He smiled his dimpled smile, and Regina couldn't help but think of how he looked so much like his father. "Can you tell me a story about a queen like you?"

Regina hummed in thought. "About a queen, mhm? Let's see, how about a story of a princess and a knight?"

Roland nodded, his eyes wide open now, and he rose up and snuggled into her side and looked up at him with wide curious brown eyes.

Robin stood leaning against the wall and smiled at the vision before him. The 'Evil' Queen, Roland held to her side, with the most maternal loving expression. His chest tightened and a familiar ache settled there.

Regina looked up and caught his gaze.

"Care to join us?" she said to him.

He was a bit taken aback by her invitation, but pushed himself away from the wall nevertheless. "I don't mind if I do." Robin smiled and took a seat on the other side of Roland.

Roland was now quietly watching the goings-on in the room as he sat up impatiently. "Okay, story time."

Robin grinned, and settled back making himself comfortable, almost as anxious for Regina's story as little Roland. "Yes, my boy, quite right. The floor is yours, milady."

Regina chuckled. "Alright, _Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess. Her beauty was spoken of throughout the lands and her beauty was surpassed only by her wisdom…"_

She looked over at Robin who was biting the inside of his cheeks, the corners of his lips twitching into a small grin.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "As I said, the story is about a princess and not any specific Queen."

"Evidently."

Roland sighed dramatically, "No talking, papa!"

Robin held up his hands. "I'm sorry, my boy. Not another word."

Roland looked back up at Regina.

Regina chuckled softly and started the story once again, "_One fateful day, a charming prince came to town. He had come to woo the princess and woo he did. They spent days together. Days became weeks and the beautiful princess began to fall in love with the charming prince. Their love was spoken of throughout the kingdom._

_One day, the charming prince took the beautiful princess to a shady meadow at the edge of the deep forest. He began to tell her how much he loved her. He said if she loved him, she would go into the deep forest and pick him the rarest flower in the world: the scarlet rose. The princess agreed out of pure devotion to the charming prince and went into the deep wood in search of the scarlet rose. The sun began to set and just when all seemed lost she happened upon the rose. She reached for the beautiful bloom but, at the very touch of the thorns, the beautiful princess fell into a deep sleep. The charming prince then appeared. He stood over her body and smiled. It had been his plan all along. He then stole all the princess' riches and stole away. He had a maiden waiting for him in another kingdom and he left the beautiful princess asleep in the deep forest._

_The king sent out search parties but no one could find her. Years passed until, one day while hunting, a man happened upon a beautiful woman covered in vines. It was the king's daughter. He tried to wake her but try as he might she would not stir from her deep sleep. The man took her back to the castle, to her father the king, and they laid her down in her bed chamber and pondered what to do. Soon they found that the cause was the poison of the scarlet rose. When they informed the king he begged them to give her an antidote but no such antidote existed. They tried every potion in the kingdom, every sorcerer, every form of magic to help her but nothing would wake the beautiful princess. A great magician Merlin, told him that all they could do was wait for the poison to run its course. The king, enraged, searched the kingdom for the cause of the princess's sleep. He found nothing until he heard word from another kingdom of a young prince whose fortune arose seemingly from nowhere. This was the charming prince that had betrayed her._

_The king, then, issued a decree that, from that day forward, should a man wish for his daughter's hand that man must wait at the kingdom for her to awaken. Men from across many kingdoms came to wait for the hand of the princess of incomparable beauty. The suitors lined the streets of the kingdom. Each trying to prove his worth and so it was._

_But as the years went by the stories of the princess' beauty faded. And slowly men began to grow weary of waiting believing that the beautiful princess would never awaken. One by one they left the kingdom. Days turned to months turned to years until the streets, once lined with suitors lie empty. All the suitors had left the beautiful princess_

_Except for one._

_A lone knight remained. Knelt at her bedside, he had not budged from the moment he arrived. His armor, heavy with rust, he waited on. Time passed until one fateful day the princess finally awoke. When she opened her eyes, only one knelt before her: the most faithful knight. As he looked in her newly opened eyes, he spoke of what had transpired: The poison, the king's decree, and how he'd waited for her._

_But then the most faithful knight said something that surprised her. He spoke of how he had always loved her from afar. He said he was once only a lonely commoner but he had become a knight in hopes of one day serving her in her court. The beautiful princess was moved to tears. She called in her father who was elated to see his daughter in full spirits yet again. Out of his joy, he promised her anything she desired. She said she wished for only one thing: the faithful knight to join her in her court. But not as a knight, but as her husband._

_They were married the next day and the kingdom rejoiced. And for years to come the kingdom would tell the tale of the beautiful princess and the most faithful knight."_

Regina looked at Roland and noticed that he was now fast asleep. Her brows furrowed. Her brown eyes found blue which were watching her intently. "You didn't tell me he was asleep."

Robin shrugged, guiltily. "Your tale was too enchanting to interrupt.I would never have known what became of the princess."

A small smile pulled at her lips. She said nothing as she untangled Roland's arms from her waist, and laying him gently down on his pillow, making sure that he was properly tucked in.

They fell into a contented silence as they studied the little boy.

"Well, goodnight Robin."

She left the room, and Robin followed closely behind her. "Regina, I need to apologize."

She stopped and turned back towards him, and raised her brow slightly.

Robin sighed. "For Roland's questions, I hope he didn't make you uncomfortable..."

She took a breath. "It's alright."

"It's just that he's grown quite attached to you."

Regina blinked and looked down at the floor. "I know," she replied softly. "It's just difficult sometimes..."

His frown told her he'd recognized her reasons for her reluctance with his son.

His reply was noncommittal, but there was a breath of care in his tone. "If you ever wanted to talk about your son. I hope you know that I'm hear for you."

Regina shook her head. "I'm starting to wonder if you're not a bit of a mind reader. I was thinking something along those lines." His eyes held hers for a long moment. "But it's late, and I'm sure Snow and Charming will be wanting to leave at first light tomorrow. If that babbling mad man, sends us on a wild goose chase, he won't have to worry about the Wicked Witch when I get my hands on him."

"Alright," He didn't question her further but was not intent on letting it go. "Perhaps some other time then?"

It was on the tip of her tongue, say goodnight and just walk away right then. He was so infuriating. Always understanding. Never pushing her but giving her time to come to him. With Robin it was always so easy. The mere thought of that made tears well and she averted her gaze so he couldn't see her eyes shimmering. Her voice was surprisingly steady considering her inner turmoil and she answered, kindly. "Perhaps."

She heard his weary sigh and she bit her lip to keep from reacting. It made her thoroughly ashamed of herself. She wanted desperately to lower her walls around her heart and let him in. She didn't know when, or how but this man and his son made their way inside her and she found she had just enough room for them in her heart.

Then she saw him move towards her. As if he read her indecision, he was standing in front of her. She couldn't tear her eyes away from him.

"I apologize for not doing this sooner but..."

Regina's eyes fluttered shut as he bent closer. She felt his breath whisper against her lips and then his mouth was on hers. It was warm, soft and gentle. His lips moved over hers, his tongue lightly tickling at her lips, until her mouth opened to allow him access. He took this as permission and with a deep moan, he pushed into her mouth, and she instantly responded. The intensity was breathtaking, but the sense of belonging was equally overwhelming. In a strange way it was already familiar.

They tasted each other, mouths sliding easily together and their hands tentatively began learning the feel of each other. His hands drifted down her arms, over her back, and slipped along the back of her dress where the material scooped meeting bare skin. The tips of his fingers took inventory of the warm flesh there.

Regina forgot how to breathe.

Just as Regina though she might pass out from the sensations he gentled the kiss and their mouths pulled away from one another.

"I'm sorry...", but she shook her head, and at the same time, tilted it back so she could kiss him. Reaching up her hands cradling his head, she pulled him to her, her fingers tangling in his hair as their mouths met in another searing kiss. Without thinking Regina nipped his lower lip, causing Robin to gasp and pull back. Regina blushed, embarrassed by her boldness. However, it only seemed to throw fuel onto the fire. Robin leant forward then, his lips meeting hers again, and he pulled her against him.

Unfortunately, the front door burst opened to reveal John and Tuck. The couple sprang a part but both men had already noticed them. Tuck's face blushed scarlet. Stammering, he said as they backed opposite way up the camber, "Oh, I apologize, Robin… Majesty… We'll just…go."

They spell was broken. They looked everywhere but at one another, until Regina heard his nervous chuckle. She looked up at him in mild surprised, was he laughing at her? He however, shook his head as if reading her thoughts. "Regina, I …"

Regina brought her fingers up to his lips. She wasn't ready for this. She needed more time, and whatever he was going to say was silenced with her fingertips and her gaze that pleaded for him to stop. She bit her lips, and then whispered, "Not yet."

He nodded in understanding. He didn't like it but he would anything for her. Even if it meant waiting a little longer. Robin ran a hand through his blonde hair and sighed.

Regina's eyes widened perceptively. In the flickering light of the torch lit hall, the sleeve of his shirt rose up on his arm, and a piece of a blackened mark came into view. Her heart pounded and her breath left her. She quickly took his forearm in her hand and pulled up the sleeve.

Whatever was left of the air in her lungs left her in a whoosh.

It was him.

He'd been here by her side the entire time and she never knew. The man she'd already fallen for.

Robin.

The man with the Lion Tattoo.


End file.
